RMC Advocacy: From Charter to Country-level Eff orts

Mande LimbuWRAJune 24, 2014

HPP strengthens maternal health

Formation of RMC Advisory Council to:

• Provide global leadership in raising awareness of disrespect and abuse (D&A) during facility-based childbirth

• Encourage dialogue on D&A from both global and national perspective

• Foster partnerships resulting in strategies that address D&A

• Promote RMC through advocacy

Initial Global Eff orts

The Human Rights Argument and Develop-ment of RMC Charter

From RMC Charter to Country-level Eff orts

Country-level efforts focus on:

• Mobilizing communities

• Incorporating RMC into professional standard-setting documents

• Influencing policy and resource allocation

• Strengthening the capacity of health facilities

National Campaign Example: Nigeria

WRA Nigeria

Influencing the Federal Ministry of Health, State Ministries of Health, regulatory bodies and health professional associations to establish RMC as a standard of practice.

• Town hall meetings

• National RMC consultations

• A communique with recommendations for establishing RMC as a standard of practice

• National Council on Health approved RMC as standard of practice

• RMC incorporated in the revised LSS manual

• State-level implementation plans

Progress & Successes

WRA Nepal

Incorporating RMC standards into law and in-service curricula for all professional disciplines involved in providing maternal health care.

National Campaign Example: Nepal

• Community dialogues in 5 districts

• Consultations with other key stakeholders

• Media engagement

• Inclusion of RMC in the Safe Motherhood Bill

• RMC context analysis

• RMC training to all health workers

• Creation of RMC Alliance

Progress & Successes

WRA Nepal members handing over the Bill with RMC inputs to the Hon. Health Minister Bidhyadhar Mallik

RMC Community Dialogue Session – KathmanduDistrict

• Measuring contribution of RMC advocacy efforts to policy change vs. maternal health outcomes

• Measuring impact when activities not implemented in the same area

• Establishing a framework for evaluation

• Framing a political global ask on RMC

• Getting global champions to focus only on this issue

Lessons

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For more information, please visit:

www.whiteribbonalliance.org/respectfulcare

www.healthpolicyproject.com/focus areas/maternal health